Just a quick post tonight to share the trailer of an documentary I got to see last night at Sebago, courtesy of Steve the Paddling Chef -- long may he paddle and cook!
He's the organizer of the movie night series we enjoy at Sebago over the winter. It's a nice way to gather as a club in the off-season, when not everybody has the gear or the skills to be getting out on the water. Steve brings a crockpot full of some hearty home-made soup and gets a fire going in the woodstove, others bring other treats or drinks, we catch up for a while and then watch a movie.
Usually it's boating-themed but for this first one of the winter of 2018-2019, he had a special treat for us - a good friend and neighbor of his, Judd Ehrlich, is a director and producer of documentaries, and Steve thought we would enjoy Keepers of the Game, his film following a courageously groundbreaking girls' lacrosse team through their first season together. Here's the description from the Flatbush Pictures website (link):
Lacrosse was born in Akwesasne Mohawk Territory as a sacred game, traditionally reserved for men. Just off the reservation at Salmon River High in Fort Covington, NY an all-Native girls lacrosse team comes together, seeking to be the first Native women’s team to bring home a Section Championship. But first, they will have to overcome their crosstown rivals, Massena High. As the season comes to a head, the team is faced with increasing ambivalence in their own community and the girls must prove that the game of lacrosse is their rightful inheritance. With more than just the championship on the line, the girls fight to blaze a new path for the next generation of Native women, while still honoring their people’s tradition in a changing world.
One aspect of the story that made this film particularly resonant for me was that there's a lot of focus on how the Mohawk tribe has been reclaiming a culture that was nearly driven out of existence - so similar to the inspiring story of the Hawaiian cultural renaissance that was just beginning when I was a kid growing up in the islands and is in full flower today, and I was remembering stories I heard during Hokule'a's visit as I watched. But anyone whose heart is moved by stories of young people with the spirit and drive to excel even when an awful lot of the world (sadly, the part most of us live in) is doing everything it can to tell them that girls like them can't shine is going to love this.
I'd especially recommend it to friends with young athletes in their lives - at first I was thinking of girls and young women, but I think any sports kid will appreciate this story.
It's available on Netflix, iTunes, and on YouTube Movies.
He's the organizer of the movie night series we enjoy at Sebago over the winter. It's a nice way to gather as a club in the off-season, when not everybody has the gear or the skills to be getting out on the water. Steve brings a crockpot full of some hearty home-made soup and gets a fire going in the woodstove, others bring other treats or drinks, we catch up for a while and then watch a movie.
Usually it's boating-themed but for this first one of the winter of 2018-2019, he had a special treat for us - a good friend and neighbor of his, Judd Ehrlich, is a director and producer of documentaries, and Steve thought we would enjoy Keepers of the Game, his film following a courageously groundbreaking girls' lacrosse team through their first season together. Here's the description from the Flatbush Pictures website (link):
Lacrosse was born in Akwesasne Mohawk Territory as a sacred game, traditionally reserved for men. Just off the reservation at Salmon River High in Fort Covington, NY an all-Native girls lacrosse team comes together, seeking to be the first Native women’s team to bring home a Section Championship. But first, they will have to overcome their crosstown rivals, Massena High. As the season comes to a head, the team is faced with increasing ambivalence in their own community and the girls must prove that the game of lacrosse is their rightful inheritance. With more than just the championship on the line, the girls fight to blaze a new path for the next generation of Native women, while still honoring their people’s tradition in a changing world.
One aspect of the story that made this film particularly resonant for me was that there's a lot of focus on how the Mohawk tribe has been reclaiming a culture that was nearly driven out of existence - so similar to the inspiring story of the Hawaiian cultural renaissance that was just beginning when I was a kid growing up in the islands and is in full flower today, and I was remembering stories I heard during Hokule'a's visit as I watched. But anyone whose heart is moved by stories of young people with the spirit and drive to excel even when an awful lot of the world (sadly, the part most of us live in) is doing everything it can to tell them that girls like them can't shine is going to love this.
I'd especially recommend it to friends with young athletes in their lives - at first I was thinking of girls and young women, but I think any sports kid will appreciate this story.
It's available on Netflix, iTunes, and on YouTube Movies.
2 comments:
I was looking for a good documentary! On deck for tonight!
Oh, you are going to love it.
Don't forget the kleenex! :)
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